Lava Ridge

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has finally greenlit the controversial Lava Ridge Wind Project, a colossal clean-energy initiative northeast of Twin Falls, Idaho. First proposed in February of 2020, the wind farm’s scale has been roughly halved after nearly four years of heated conversation between BLM and local ranchers, Native American leaders, Japanese American advocates, and other stakeholders.
The project shrank from its original proposal—cutting turbines from 400 to 241 and limiting their height to a max of 660 feet. With 231 turbines on BLM-managed lands and 10 on state lands, the design now aims to balance clean energy dreams with the realities of protecting sensitive natural and cultural landmarks.
The project will disrupt a ‘modest’ 992 acres of BLM-managed land across Jerome, Lincoln, and Minidoka counties—about 2.5% of the total project area. In a move to appease the many upset about its placement near the Minidoka National Historic Site, the closest turbine will now spin nine miles away.
The Biden administration’s renewable energy push is on a roll, with 43 approved projects to date, including this one. Lava Ridge is now part of a growing clean-energy legacy powering over 15 million homes nationwide and itself promises to energize up to 500,000 homes while creating hundreds of local jobs.